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Federal Judiciary

: Second Circuit Sentencing Blog

Conditions Pre-Trial Detention As A Basis For A Non-Guidelines Sentence

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United States v. Guglielmo, No. 07-2368-cr (2d Cir. Jan. 26, 2009) (found here)

Guglielmo argued that the district court erred in not considering the conditions of his pre-trial detention in sentencing him. The Second Circuit rejected the appeal, noting that "nothing in our case law requires a district court to grant such a departure."

True enough. But there is a significant body of caselaw in which courts have, in fact, departed or imposed non-Guidelines sentences based on the conditions of pre-trial detention. And they're worth mentioning here. If you have such a situation, you might want to check out the following cases:

United States v. Brooks, No. 07-CR-00187 (CPS), 2008 WL 4693335, at *4 (E.D.N.Y. Oct. 23, 2008) (reducing defendant's sentence by six months because of an extended SHU confinement wherein defendant "was confined to his cell for 23 hours a day, only permitted on hour per day of outdoor exercise in a cage, had no contact with other inmates, and had restricted commisary, family and religious visiting, and telephone privileges even though he had not committed a disciplinary infraction")

United States v. Speed Joyeros, S.A., 204 F. Supp. 2d 412, 441 (E.D.N.Y. 2002) ("A court may depart if the defendant has suffered from unusual stress due to a lengthy or particularly stressful [pre-trial] detention")

United States v. Francis, 129 F. Supp. 2d 612 (S.D.N.Y. 2001) (Conditions of presentence confinement in state facility, below those in federal institutions, provide grounds for a departure from Sentencing Guidelines, as mitigating circumstance not taken into consideration in preparing Guidelines) (See also cases cited therein)

United States v. Ekwunoh, 888 F. Supp. 369, 373-74 (E.D.N.Y. 1994) (finding that the negative effects of pre-trial incarceration warrant a downward departure)

Full post as published by Second Circuit Sentencing Blog on January 26, 2009 (boomark / email).

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